statelessness, and assist civil society with the development of a national network on nationality and statelessness. On reforming the Protocol on ECOWAS Citizenship In reference to commitment 124 and recommendation 105 of the Abidjan Declaration, participants recommend that States: 8. Revise the Protocol by: a. allowing all citizens of an ECOWAS Member State to enjoy ECOWAS citizenship, regardless of the manner in which they acquired their nationality (automatically or through a procedure) and without any additional conditions; b. recognizing the principle of dual nationality and allowing all citizens of an ECOWAS Member State who are citizens of another State, regardless of whether that state is an ECOWAS Member State or not, to acquire community citizenship; c. including the right to nationality as a fundamental right of ECOWAS citizens; d. recognizing the ECOWAS Court of Justice’s jurisdiction in all matters relating to refusal to grant, or withdrawal of, Member State nationality, given that such a refusal or withdrawal would prevent an individual from enjoying ECOWAS citizenship. On the process of adopting the African Union’s draft protocol on the right to nationality and the eradication of statelessness in Africa Participants welcome the adoption of the draft protocol by the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights during its July 2015 extraordinary session. In light of the adoption process currently underway in the other bodies of the African Union, and in relation to commitment 56 of the Abidjan Declaration, participants recommend that: 4 We call upon ECOWAS to integrate into Community law measures to ensure the eradication of statelessness and to guarantee the right to a nationality for anyone with a relevant link to an ECOWAS State, within the context of relevant treaties, protocols and commitments. 5 We invite ECOWAS to revise its 1982 Protocol on Citizenship so as to incorporate the right to a nationality; to define ECOWAS’ role in ensuring access to citizenship; to guarantee others rights enshrined in Community law, including the right to non-discrimination, democratic participation and due process of law; and finally to provide a common understanding of the rights of nationals of West African states as ECOWAS citizens. 6 We call upon ECOWAS Member States to support the development and adoption of a Protocol on the Right to Nationality to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights 3